Tag Archives: Port Aransas

Master sand sculptors from throughout the world have been
stretching their imaginations this year at various sand-sculpting
festivals where they’ve been putting their unique abilities on
display.

“Inseminate” by Guy-Olivier
Deveau of Quebec City, first place in the Master Sand Sculpting
Competition in Hampton Beach, N.H.Photo courtesy of Hampton Beach Village
District

In June, the 14th annual Master Sand Sculpting Competition in
Hampton Beach, N.H., brought together a dozen amazing artists,
including first-place winner Guy-Olivier Deveau from Quebec City,
Canada. Deveau’s sculpture “Inseminate” (shown here) was done as a
tribute to the recently deceased Swiss artist H.R. Giger, who
helped create the creature in the movie “Alien,” according to
festival organizers.

I am both amused and inspired by Carl Jara’s piece, “Putting
Down Roots,” which depicts a friendly embrace between man and
nature (second photo on this page). Jara, of Cleveland, Ohio,
continues to impress me with his imaginary figures.

“Putting Down Roots” by
Carl Jara of Cleveland, Ohio, third placePhoto courtesy of Hampton Beach Village
District

Tacoma’s Sue McGrew participated in Hampton Beach, creating a
thoughtful piece she called “Mother’s Protection” (third on this
page). For a full gallery of photos of the sand sculptures, visit
the
Hampton Beach visitors page or the Flickr page created for the event.

“Mother’s Protection” by
Sue McGrew of TacomaPhoto courtesy of Hampton Beach Village
District

I am sorry to learn that the Arts in Action festival held in
Port Angeles for nearly a half-century will come to an end after
this year’s event, Sept. 5-7.

The folks running the Port Angeles festival were no longer able
to continue, and nobody stepped up to take it over, according to
Doc Reiss, sand sculpture organizer.

“Forty-nine years is a good, long run,” Reiss told reporter
Arwyn Rice of the Peninsula Daily News, who tells the history of
the sand-sculpture competition and the decision to end it this
year.

McGrew and Sandis Kondrats of Latvia will creates tribute
sculptures this year in Port Angeles to recognize 10 years of
master-level sand sculpting in the remote city on the Olympic
Peninsula. I have been pleased to report on the event as an
“Amusing Monday” feature since 2009:

Master-level sand sculpting also has come and gone from Federal
Way, which just goes to show that these festivals are as ephemeral
as the sand sculptures themselves.

In 2011, amateur photographer Flint Weiss of Maple Valley shot
the Federal Way sculptures, then he told me why he loved them but
was worried about their future. His words turned out to be
prophetic:

“I do feel that art is enriching and that everybody is capable
of producing some,” he wrote in an e-mail. “One of the things I
like about sand sculpture is how solid and crisp everything looks,
when it is really only made from sand.

“That makes sculptures like these feel somewhat improbable,
making them all the more impressive. I also really enjoy the sheer
artistry involved. While it’s easy for me (or any of us) to take a
trowel to a pile of sand, it never looks anything like what these
folks do.

“It’s sad,” he continued, “that this contest doesn’t get the
public support it deserves. Given how much Western Washington loves
both art and craftsmanship, it’s kind of surprising that the
contest isn’t more popular.”

After three years in Federal Way, the World Championship of Sand
Sculptures moved on to Atlantic City, N.J., as I reported in “Water
Ways”:

In other areas, “Boston” magazine” covered the 2014 Revere
Beach National Sand Sculpting Festival, which featured the theme
“Stars and Stripes: A Tribute to Our Nation’s Armed Forces” to
coincide with the 70th anniversary of D-Day. (Don’t miss the
extended slide show at the bottom of the page.)